Loose-leaf book.



PATENTED JULY 5, 1904 H. W. AYRES.

LOOSE LEAF BOOK.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 20, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented July 5, 1904.

PATENT EEieE,

LOOSE-LEAF BOOK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 764,102, dated July 5, 1904.

Application filed pril 20, 1903.

Be it known that I, HENRY W. AYREs, acitizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Loose-Leaf Book, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to books in which the leaves are detachably held, and which is adjustable to be contracted or expanded to accommodate the required number of leaves.

Loose-leaf books have been constructed with straight posts which pass through perforations in the leaves to hold the same in place, and books thus constructed when open flat cause the leaves to bend at their inner margins or along the leaves near the posts, and it is difficult to write on the leaf close to the inner margin on this account. The present invention is designed to overcome this difliculty by providing a device for attaching the leaves which will hold the same securely and yet will allow the book to be opened flat and permit the entire surface of the leaves to lie flatly against either cover.

Another object of my invention is to provide a device for fastening the leaves which will occupy buta very small space in the back of the book and which is securely attached to the back of the book.

Another object is to provide improved means for fastening the attaching'means to the book proper.

Another object is to construct devices for fastening the leaves which will allow a leaf to be inserted or removed with facility and which will allow of either a single leaf or a number of leaves together to be quickly placed in position in the book without necessitating an accurate alinement of the perforations of the leaves, as has heretofore been necessary when placing a number of leaves together onv the posts as ordinarily constructed.

Another object is to construct fastening clevices which will allow anumber of leaves together to be transferred without disarrangement from one cover to the other as easily as a single leaf may be transferred from one cover 'to the other.

Another object is to provide fastening de- Serial No. 153,430. (No model.)

vices which are so constructed that the danger of tearing the leaves around the perforations when inserting the leaves is reduced to the minimum.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention, and, referring to the same, Figure I is a perspective view of a book constructed with my improved fastening devices, one of the covers being partially broken away. Fig. II is an end elevation looking toward the end of a portion of the book which includes the novel features which form my invention. Fig. III is a plan view of an end portion of the open book including the features which form the presentinvention. Fig. IV is a view looking toward the front end of the book closed, the leaves being removed. Fig. V is a section on line V V, Fig. IV. Fig. VI is a section on line VI VI, Fig. IV. Fig. VII is an end view of the book opened, showing another form of the invention. Fig. VIII is a view similar to Fig. VII with the covers shifted toward each other to flex the back and separate the posts to allow for the insertion or removal of leaves.

The present invention comprises, essen tially, a pair of supporting-bars which are hinged together and which carry half-round curved hooks, and when the supporting-bars are in one position the curved hooks are brought together in such a way that one hook on one bar lies next to a hook on the other bar, and the two half-round hooks together form a cylindrical arch which is preferably concentric with the axis upon which the two supporting-bars hinge. The members which form each post are equal in length, and they lap by each other a suflicient distance to preserve the continuity of the arch, and their length is such that when the supporting-bars are rocked apart a space is formed at the center of the arch, the ends of the two members separating from each other sufficiently to allow for the insertion or removal of a sheet or sheets. The respective arches thus formed pass through the perforations in the leaves, and owing to the curvatures of the arch the leaves are allowed to lie flat when the book is opened, because the leaves on one side of the book when opened will be carried on one side of the arches, while the leaves on the other side of the book will be carried on the other side of the arches. The two supporting-bars are formed of strips of metal which are folded, and the ends of each strip are turned over to form Win s 2 the win s 2 being )ivoted together by means of pins 3, as shown. Each strip is provided with a pair of hook-shaped half-round posts 4. The adjacent posts of the respective bars are arranged in pairs, the post on one supporting-bar forming one member of an arch and a post on the other bar forming the other member of the arch. The flat faces of each pair of posts lie together, so that the arch thus formed is roundin cross-seetion. The respective members of the arches may be fastened to the supporting-bars 1 in any desired manner, preferably by riveting. In the drawings I have shown only two arches; but it should be understood that the number of arches may vary with the size of the book. For instance, in a large book I would probably employ another arch spaced midway between the two end arches. The supporting-bars may be attached to the covers by means of tapes or strips of canvas 5, which pass through slots formed in the folds of the bars. The tapes or strips 5 are glued or otherwise fastened to the covers 6. The canvas strips pass from the cover to and between the two leaves of the bar and then through the slots in the supporting-bar. They are then doubled over and returned over the bottom leaf of the supporting-bar and passed back and glued or otherwise fastened to the cover. In the present embodiment I have shown the cover as consisting of flexible leather 7, which is in one piece and continues around the back to form the two covers. Inside of the leather of each cover is asheet of canvas glued to the leather, and the strips of canvas 5 may be fastened inside of the sheets of canvas, as shown in Fig. I, the strips 5 extending a sufficient distance over the covers to provide the requisite strength.

Figs. V and VI show another form of the supporting-bars, in which the bar is provided with a flange 9, which lies flat against the cover, and the posts 4 rest against the flanges 9 and support the same. This form of supporting-bar may be attached to the covers by canvas or other flexible material 10, one edge of which lies between the leaves of the supporting-bar and is erimped therein, while the other portion of the canvas passes over and between the flange 9 and the cover, to which it may be glued or otherwise fastened.

Fig. VII shows the book opened and with substantially an equal number of leaves resting against each other. It will be observed that the posts 4 overlap sufficiently to preserve the continuity of the arch. hen it is desired to insert or remove a leaf or leaves, the wings 2 at each end of the supportingbar may be pinched together by the lingers to form an obtuse angle, as shown in Fig. VIII, which draws the covers slightly toward each other and which rocks the posts 4 through a sufficient distance to cause their free ends to separate sufficiently to allow for inserting or removing leaves.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

'1. A pair of suppo1-tingbars hinged together, each supportingbar comprising a strip of metal folded on itself, said strip being slotted at the bend of the fold, a tape passing through said slot, and attached to the cover, and a separable arch normally bridging said supporting-bars.

2. A pair of supporting-bars hinged together, each supportingbar comprising a strip of metal folded on itself, each of said strips being provided with a plurality of slots at the bend ofthe fold, tapes passing through the slots and attached to the covers, and a separable arch comprising a pair of half-round posts bridging said supporting-bars.

In testimony whereof I. have signed my name to this specification, inthe presence of two subscribing witnesses, at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, this 11th day of April, 1903.

HENRY IV. AYRES.

WVitnesses:

GEORGE T. I-IACKLEY, FREDERICK I. LYON. 

